There are previous three-dimensional tic-tac-toe games. For example, such a game is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,747,931, in which a cubic grid structure is provided with 26 playmaking compartments all of which are accessible from a plurality of sides of the cube. Balls are placed within the compartments and, since the balls are mobile and would roll from their assigned positions upon manipulation of the cube, transparent covers must be provided for each side of the cube so that after a ball is placed in an assigned position on the grid structure, the snap-on cover will be put in place to prevent the ball from falling from its position in the grid structure. Moreover, games such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,747,931 are described as being played on one side of the grid only until the completion of the game on that side. Then a cover is supplied over the completed side of the cube, whereafter the players may proceed to another side of the grid and play that side.
The need to utilize a cover to retain balls or other game markers, and to complete one side of the grid before proceeding to other sides, greatly detracts from the pleasure of playing a tic-tac-toe game. To those who are cognizant of the game and play it with some degree of regularity, it quickly becomes apparent that he who makes the first play in the nine-box portion of the game cannot be the loser unless he misplays. It also rapidly becomes apparent that, absent error by the initial player, the second player of the game cannot be the winner and, at best, can only proceed to a draw. Thus, the novelty of the game is quickly exhausted when the game is played in two-dimensional form. Playing the game in a three-dimensional form, as is disclosed in the '931 patent referred to, simply presents six repetitive two-dimensional games which, if played properly on both sides, only results in six draws. Thus, the players of tic-tac-toe games rapidly lose their enthusiasm for the game.
The present invention, on the other hand, permits playing on all six sides of a cubic grid simultaneously, and without the need for utilization of covers for any side of the game. Playing all sides simultaneously greatly adds to the excitement of playing tic-tac-toe and, indeed, makes tic-tac-toe a completely different game, rather than mere repetitive placement of X's and O's. It is perfectly possible for a player to sacrifice games on one or two of the sides of the cube, yet in so doing achieve such superior positions on the other sides as will allow him to win more sides of the cube than he loses and, therefore, achieve total victory in playing the entirety of the cube.
It is, therefore, a primary object of the present invention to transform what has become almost a mechanistic application of X's and O's in a two-dimensional tic-tac-toe game into a three-dimensional game that is far from mechanical and provides a new and stimulated interest in tic-tac-toe games.
Another objective of the present invention is to provide a three-dimensional tic-tac-toe device which permits players to pass the cube about freely and rotate it during the course of play.
It is still another object of our invention to provide a three-dimensional tic-tac-toe game in which play can be made on all six surfaces of the lattice structure in successive moves.